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Samantha Harris, 40, with her husband of 10 years, Michael Hess and their two daughters Josselyn (L) and Hillary (R).
(Getty Images)

By now, the whole country has probably heard about Samantha Harris‘s decision to undergo a double mastectomy, but there are two people she hasn’t broken the news to yet: her daughters.

“They don’t know yet,” she told People. “I want them to hear from me first what Mommy has and that I’m going to be fine. I don’t want them to be afraid.”

When she made the decision to go through with a double mastectomy, scheduled for later this month, she did so with her daughters in mind. “I think the ‘why me?’ wasn’t so much ‘why me?’ but ‘why my girls?’” Harris said in an emotional interview with Entertainment Tonight.

“My daughters are three and six, all they’re concerned about is to have mommy active, be able to hold them, hug them, kiss them, be present for everything. I will be here to plan my daughters’ weddings, and they better like the dress I pick,” she joked.

Harris and her husband, Michael Hess, decided that the best way to share the news with Josselyn and Hillary is to tell them separately. In addition to having separate conversations with their daughters, the couple are creating a video series to document Harris’s journey.

“The day we found out while it was still fresh in our minds, we made a video,” she said, adding that they’ve since filmed two more. “I don’t know if we’ll end up showing it to them, but at least we have the option.”

“I’m a mom first and I’ve never wanted to live more than when having children,” Harris added.

After making her brave announcement, Harris received an influx of stories and well-wishes from fans and thanked everyone for their love and support on Twitter:

Thks for the well wishes, kindness & support. It means so much to me & my family! It's a tough road but I'm here to stand up & fight cancer.

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